The Importance of Maintaining Your Car Battery During Winter Months

The Importance of Maintaining Your Car Battery During Winter Months

 It’s that time of the year again where many of us heed the weatherman’s warning and safely store our pride and joy away from the snowy elements and salty roads.  We’re careful to clean, cover and some of us even surround our vehicles with moth balls.  Unfortunately, we needlessly forget one very important step that can end up saving headaches and “wallet-aches” alike.

In other words, many people only realize the importance of a battery charger when the cold winter months arrive, and they wind up with a dead battery.

It’s true, we all like to take care of our cars but the car battery is sometimes neglected and then forgotten to the point of needing a replacement. In fact, this is usually more common with classic cars as they tend to be used infrequently or a lot less than your average car at the very least.

But what does that mean to you?

 Well, you might be expecting some cold weather or maybe you’re sick and tired of trying to resurrect your car battery. For this reason, investing in a battery charger will not only help you avoid these situations but also ensure that your battery will last a lot longer than without one. I

Let’s take a closer look at the impact of cold weather and the importance of a car battery charger:

How Cold Weather Can Impact Your Car Battery

As you know, car batteries can maintain a charge when driving but electronics start to drain this battery as soon as the engine is switched off. Needless to say, this means you should always unplug electronics and make sure both the interior lights and headlights are switched off with the engine.

But that’s just part of the story…

You see, many factors affect the lifespan or condition of a car battery including temperature, humidity and the local environment. In fact, cold weather is arguably the most common of these reasons and one which often ends up with car owners needing to replace a car battery.

In case you might be asking yourself, liquid electrolyte is what enables the car battery to hold a charge. However, this solution is vulnerable in especially cold temperatures which significantly reduces its ability to transfer the power needed to start a car.  

With this in mind, you might live in an especially cold area and a battery charger can be used to maintain the battery over time. For many people, they have a classic car and battery chargers are essential for vehicles that spend more time than usual sitting idle in the garage. On the other hand, maybe you have no idea if a battery can be recharged and you simply need a charger to check if the battery should be replaced.

But what can you do to maintain a car battery and protect this lifespan?

Investing in an Efficient Car Battery Charger for Winter

Although recent studies Indicate the lifespan of a car battery is five or six years, this lifespan is greatly reduced and likely to end when a battery is subjected to cold weather without sufficient maintenance. That is to say, if you can no longer recharge a car battery, you will need a replacement.

Either way, you will need a battery charger to get your car back on the road and it simply makes sense to invest in a battery charger sooner rather than later.

At the same time, not all battery chargers are created equal.

For example, the Exile Ex – 1 Charger is just as effective at maintaining and improving the lifespan of a car battery. What’s more, you can permanently mount this charger next to the battery and use the LED status indicator to monitor the current state of your battery. As if that’s not enough, an Exile Charger is fully waterproof and dust-proof which makes it ideal for all weather conditions and even classic cars or vehicles that spend significant time in storage.

Moral of the story: While the Ex-1 Charger provides a reliable recharge for dead or tired batteries, this kind of charger can also remove any need to recharge or replace a battery in the first place.

For peace of mind and improved car battery performance, Retro Manufacturing is a leading producer of aftermarket parts including the Exile Ex- 1 Battery Keeper.